MyoStep is a next-generation soft pediatric wearable exoskeleton designed to provide gait assistance and rehabilitation for children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). Cerebral Palsy affects approximately 1 in every 345 children in the United States alone, making it the most common motor disability in childhood. Children with CP often experience difficulty walking and a range of gait impairments due to muscle weakness and spasticity.

MyoStep was developed at the University of Houston’s BRAIN Center. The system integrates smart actuators and a multimodal sensor network into a lightweight, washable, pull-on garment that mimics natural human biomechanics. Our mission is to restore mobility and confidence by providing a discreet, functional, and user-centric alternative to heavy, rigid exoskeletons while also facilitating diagnosis, rehabilitation, and daily mobility. Current rehabilitation and assistive devices, such as exoskeletons and rigid orthotics, restrict natural movement, are difficult to manufacture, require frequent replacement, and are too heavy for daily pediatric use. These limitations lead to poor treatment outcomes, increased physical strain on the child, and a lack of accessibility to continuous therapy, especially in a home setting. Offering a lightweight, flexible, child-friendly, soft exoskeleton that can be used at home to deliver ongoing, adaptive gait support and rehabilitation is a major innovation in exoskeleton technology. The device’s artificial muscles and integrated sensor network provide real-time assistance tailored to the child's unique gait patterns and muscle conditions, ensuring that therapy is both effective and convenient. It helps improve motor function, enhance mobility, and reduce the physical burden on both the child and their caregivers through continuous monitoring and automatic adjustments.

MyoStep transforms rehabilitation from a periodic clinic visit to a daily, wearable solution. MyoStep is the first soft robotic exosuit designed specifically for young children with CP. Its flexible and compliant structure easily accommodates children’s rapid growth, something rigid exoskeletons cannot do. Furthermore, the MyoStep exosuit is quiet, comfortable and seamless enough for use at home, school, or anywhere a child’s day takes them.

The medical exoskeleton market grew from $1.87 billion in 2025 to $2.10 billion in 2026 and is projected to reach $4.46 billion by 2032, driven by the rising prevalence of neurological and mobility disorders alongside advances in wearable technology. The soft robotics segment, which encompasses MyoStep's core technology, is growing even faster at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 49.5% through 2035. The lifetime cost of care for a child with CP currently exceeds $1.6 million. MyoStep’s customer base consists of families, healthcare providers and outpatient rehabilitation centers looking to integrate advanced soft robotics into their standard gait training protocols to increase patient engagement, and frequency.

MyoStep's seamless, and lightweight design can be easily adapted for broader uses, including real-time monitoring of human performance, active recovery support after injury, and post-stroke gait retraining.
MyoStep employs a user-centric design that combines the comfort of layered fabrics with advanced mechanical assistance, to reduce the energy cost of walking and ultimately improve the quality of life for children with Cerebral Palsy.